Keyword Chef vs Keywords Everywhere in 2026: Credit-based wildcard search vs browser-extension keyword data
One is a standalone tool built around wildcard long-tail discovery and real-time SERP scoring for $29 a month. The other overlays search volume and CPC data inline across 20+ platforms, starting at $7 a month.
Keyword Chef
Keywords Everywhere- Keywords Everywhere overlays keyword data directly inside Google, YouTube, Amazon, and 15+ other sites you already browse. Keyword Chef is a standalone tool you visit specifically to run wildcard and SERP searches.
- Keyword Chef's wildcard search generates long-tail phrase variations from a placeholder pattern you define. Keywords Everywhere shows volume, CPC, and competition for whatever keyword or page you happen to be viewing, with no pattern-based generation.
- Keywords Everywhere offers API access on its Gold ($40/month) and Platinum ($120/month) tiers. Keyword Chef has no API on any plan.
- Keyword Chef scores keywords against live SERP data in real time. Keywords Everywhere reports search volume, CPC, and competition metrics but does not run an equivalent live SERP difficulty analysis.
- Keywords Everywhere's entry tier starts at $7/month, cheaper than Keyword Chef's $29/month Starter plan, though Keywords Everywhere's credits expire after 12 months while Keyword Chef's Pay As You Go credits never expire.
- Keywords Everywhere includes AI prompt templates and an MCP integration for ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and DeepSeek. Keyword Chef has no AI-model integration of any kind.
- Neither tool includes rank tracking or backlink analysis; both are meant to sit alongside a broader SEO stack rather than replace one.
Keyword Chef and Keywords Everywhere are built for different moments in a keyword research session. Keyword Chef is a destination: you go there specifically to run wildcard searches, phrases like "best * for small kitchens" that expand into every real variation searchers use, each one scored against live SERP data. Keywords Everywhere is the opposite, a browser extension that shows you search volume, CPC, and competition data passively, right inside Google, YouTube, Amazon, and more than 15 other sites you're already browsing. Keywords Everywhere is also the one with an API, on its top two plans, while Keyword Chef has none. Neither tool does rank tracking or backlink analysis. The real decision is whether you want a dedicated wildcard discovery engine you visit intentionally, or ambient keyword data that follows you everywhere you already work.
The tools at a glance
Keyword Chef
Credit-based keyword research built for publishers, with wildcard search and real-time SERP analysis that surfaces low-competition long-tail keywords your competitors miss
Keyword Chef strips keyword research down to one job: finding long-tail keywords with genuine search intent and telling you, before you write, whether they're worth targeting. The signature feature is wildcard search, where an asterisk in a phrase like "best * under $50" gets filled with every plausible variation the tool can find in real search data, which surfaces patterns a standard expand-and-filter workflow tends to miss.
Every keyword gets scored against live SERP data rather than a cached difficulty number, factoring in domain authority spread, forum presence, and thin-content signals on the current page one. A bulk SERP analyzer applies the same scoring to lists you already have, and a separate Niche Insights add-on ($97/year) maps topic clusters and content gaps across a niche.
Pricing runs on credits, from $29 a month for 5,000 credits up to $119 a month for 50,000, with a Pay As You Go option for lifetime, non-expiring credits. There is no rank tracking, backlink data, or API of any kind, so it's built to sit alongside another SEO tool rather than replace one.
| Feature | Starter $29/month | Plus $69/month | Pro $119/month | Pay As You Go Per credit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly credits | 5,000 | 20,000 | 50,000 | Lifetime, no expiry |
| PAA Keywords | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Similar Keywords | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Get All SERPs | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Domains Report | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| Niche Insights (add-on, $97/yr) | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
Keywords Everywhere
Turn your browser into a keyword research powerhouse across 20+ platforms
Keywords Everywhere is a Chrome, Firefox, and Edge extension that overlays search volume, CPC, and competition data directly on the sites you already visit, Google Search, Google Keyword Planner, YouTube, Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and 15 or so other platforms, so you never have to switch tabs to check a number. Launched in 2015, it now has more than 1.5 million users, making it one of the most widely installed SEO extensions.
Beyond the core overlay, the tool has added AI prompt templates for ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and DeepSeek, plus an MCP integration for teams wiring keyword data into AI agent workflows. Keyword difficulty scores, on-page SEO analysis, and trend graphs round out the picture, all delivered passively as you browse rather than through a dedicated search interface.
Pricing runs on annual credits across four tiers, from $7 a month at the Bronze level up to $120 a month at Platinum, with API access unlocked on the top two tiers. The tradeoff is that credits expire after 12 months, so light users on higher tiers can end up paying for capacity they never use, and there is no rank tracking or project management built in.
| Feature | Bronze $7/month | Silver $14/month | Gold $40/month | Platinum $120/month |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Search volume & CPC | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Competition data | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| SEO difficulty scores | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Bulk keyword analysis | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| API access | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
Head-to-head feature comparison
| Feature | Keyword Chef | Keywords Everywhere |
|---|---|---|
| Wildcard / pattern-based keyword search | Yes | No |
| Inline browser overlay across 20+ platforms | No | Yes (Google, YouTube, Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and 15+ more) |
| Live / real-time SERP scoring | Yes (real-time) | No |
| Search volume & CPC data | Yes (via SERP analysis, credit-based) | Yes |
| Bulk keyword analysis | Yes (Bulk SERP Analyzer) | Yes (Gold & Platinum plans) |
| Ecommerce platform coverage (Amazon, eBay, Etsy) | No | Yes (Amazon, eBay, Etsy) |
| AI prompt templates / MCP integration | No | Yes (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, DeepSeek) |
| Rank tracking | No | No |
| Backlink analysis | No | No |
| API access | No | Yes (Gold & Platinum plans) |
| Annual credit expiry | No (Pay As You Go credits never expire) | Yes (credits expire after 12 months) |
| Starting price | $29/month | $7/month |
Which should you choose?
Keyword ChefKeywords EverywhereKeywords EverywhereKeywords EverywhereKeyword ChefKeywords EverywhereThese two tools reward different research habits. Keywords Everywhere works because it's ambient, you don't change your workflow, the data just shows up as you browse Google, Amazon, or YouTube, and at $7 a month it's cheap enough to run alongside almost anything. Keyword Chef works because it's deliberate, wildcard search and live SERP scoring are things you sit down and do on purpose to mine a niche for long-tail opportunities, and that focus is worth the higher $29 entry price for publishers who need it. The API gap matters too: if you need to pull keyword data into your own dashboard or BI tool, Keywords Everywhere's Gold and Platinum tiers are the only option between the two.
Bottom line
Install Keywords Everywhere first, at $7 a month it costs almost nothing and pays for itself the first time it saves you a tab switch, and upgrade to Gold if you need the API. Add Keyword Chef once ambient browsing data stops being enough and you need wildcard-generated long-tail keywords validated against live SERP results, which Keywords Everywhere has no equivalent for.
Frequently asked questions
Is Keywords Everywhere or Keyword Chef better for finding long-tail keywords?
Keyword Chef is purpose-built for long-tail discovery through its wildcard search, which generates variations from a placeholder phrase and scores each one against live SERP data. Keywords Everywhere surfaces volume and CPC for whatever keyword you're already looking at, but it doesn't generate new long-tail variations the way Keyword Chef does.
Does Keyword Chef have a browser extension like Keywords Everywhere?
No, Keyword Chef is a standalone web application you visit directly, not a browser extension. Keywords Everywhere is the extension-based tool, overlaying data on Google, YouTube, Amazon, and more than 15 other platforms as you browse.
Which tool has an API, Keyword Chef or Keywords Everywhere?
Keywords Everywhere is the only one of the two with an API, available on its Gold ($40/month) and Platinum ($120/month) plans. Keyword Chef does not offer API access on any tier.
Can Keywords Everywhere replace a dedicated keyword tool like Keyword Chef?
Keywords Everywhere can cover passive, browsing-based research, but it has no equivalent to Keyword Chef's wildcard search or real-time SERP difficulty scoring, and neither tool includes rank tracking or backlink data. Many users run Keywords Everywhere as their daily-browsing companion and reach for Keyword Chef when they need a focused long-tail research session.
Is Keyword Chef worth $29 a month when Keywords Everywhere starts at $7?
Keyword Chef is worth the extra cost if you need wildcard-generated long-tail keywords validated against live SERP results, a capability Keywords Everywhere does not have. If you only need volume and CPC numbers while browsing, Keywords Everywhere's $7/month Bronze plan covers that without the extra spend.
Do either tool work with ChatGPT or other AI platforms?
Keywords Everywhere overlays keyword data on ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and DeepSeek, and ships AI prompt templates plus an MCP integration for AI agent workflows. Keyword Chef has no AI-model integration of any kind.